Infrared (IR) radiation sources of many varieties including direct current and pulsable versions have been developed for use with nondispersive gas analyzers. Typically, an infrared source, gas cell and detector are mounted along a common optical axis. With suitable calibration a gas introduced into the cell can be identified on the basis of selective absorption of infrared radiation by the gas. A selective IR filter is usually placed in the optical path to limit detection to a narrow band of wavelengths.
The development of pulsable IR sources has made it possible to eliminate mechanical chopping of the transmitted beam and still maintain AC signal processing capability. These pulsed IR sources allow a significant savings in weight, power consumption and increased reliability for use in a new generation of small portable gas analysis systems. Prior devices, however, do not provide for sufficient efficiency, power level or required stability. Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a small, highly efficient pulsable IR source in the range of b 1-3 watts of power for use in these new systems.